911 Glass Cut Teen
Location: Dana Point, California Date: December 28, 1993 Story In December 1993, 18-year-old Nicole Miller traveled to Dana Point, California to visit her father, Wayne, and his fiancee, Susie Breedlove, for Christmas. During her stay, she came down with the flu and seemed to not be getting over it. Before she went to bed on the night of December 28, everyone agreed that she should go to the doctor as soon as she got up the next morning. She wasn't feeling well and decided to sleep on the couch so she wouldn't wake her sister, who was sleeping in the bedroom. Wayne and Susie gave her a liquid night cold medication and it knocked her out, which they were happy for because she needed to sleep. Later that night, while Wayne and Susie slept, Nicole got up and went to get a glass of water. After she got it, she slowly headed back to the couch in the living room. Before she could sit down, she collapsed and fell into the wall, breaking the top of the glass she held in her hand. She then fell onto it, severely cutting her neck. Wayne and Susie woke by the sound of the broken glass. Susie quickly left the bedroom, put her robe on, and went to the living room to investigate. She then found Nicole on the floor near the wall badly cut. "When my eyes focused, the walls were covered in blood. She was just...profusely bleeding," Susie recalled. Susie got Nicole to the couch and called 911. Orange County Fire dispatcher Lori Fenimore took the call and was told that Nicole was badly cut and not breathing. She was about to give instructions to Susie when Nicole began breathing on her own as the ambulance headed to the scene. Fenimore told Wayne and Susie to lay Nicole on her back on the floor. Wayne didn't know how bad it was until he saw the extent of her injuries. "I remember losing it, saying, 'Oh my god, not Nicki. Please not Nicki,'" Wayne sadly recalled. As Fenimore heard some screaming in the background, Susie remained very calm as she told Wayne to get some towels. Susie told Fenimore that Nicole was having arterial bleeding from her neck, meaning to Fenimore that Susie knew first aid very well. She knew that arterial bleeding is severe. Fenimore advised Susie to elevate Nicole's legs to prevent. Wayne used the pillows off the couch to do so, but feared the worst when he saw the amount the blood she lost. Fenimore praised Susie for keeping herself composed and keeping everyone calm. "Had she not maintained direct pressure on the wound with the time the paramedics had to drive there, the daughter would've bled the death," Fenimore stated. Within seven minute of the call, paramedics Skip Hawkins and Eric Leverence arrived. "We walked through the door and we see blood...literary everywhere. You don't expect to see this kind of scenario underneath a Christmas tree," Hawkins stated. As Leverence treated the wound on Nicole's neck, he was concerned that when he opened it up to look at it, air would get into the vessel, which would cause an air embolism. They decided to load Nicole into the ambulance quickly. Nicole was taken to Mission Hospital Regional Medical Center and immediately rushed into surgery, where trauma surgeon Dr. Kenneth Kushner performed a delicate operation. "Nicole sustained a major laceration of the internal jugular vein. It's a high flow vain and clearly if it continued to keep bleeding, the patient could hemorrhage severely," Dr. Kushner stated. As Nicole underwent surgery, Wayne and Susie were waiting anxiously for her outcome, worrying that they might get news that she didn't make it. After Dr. Kushner's successful operation, Nicole underwent recovery from massive blood loss. Amazingly, she fully recovered after two months. Wayne and Susie are amazed by her recovery. "It wasn't a minor call, but it was a relatively easy procedure to do that saved her life. Anybody can learn how to do direct pressure. If you just learn the basics, it helps the emergency personnel tremendously," Leverence said. "You contributed to having a living daughter to these basic skills that they have learned, remembered and acted upon. Because if you can save your child's life, that is the best gift of all," Hawkins said. The accident has brought the family closer together. "My dad...he's the greatest guy I know. He's always there and he really shows his love and that he cares," Nicole stated. "How do you express to show how much you love her. To show it daily," Wayne said. "Susie is a very wonderful person. She's perfect for my dad. She'll make our family very happy and I mean, she's already has. Susie...there's not enough words to say a wonderful that she is," Nicole said. "I feel that it's miracle that she's here. I don't really say that to her. But I think we proven that we can make it through anything. And we will," Susie said. Category:1993 Category:California Category:Bleeding Category:Glass Category:Holiday Category:Christmas